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Danielle Wood reportingHave you ever run into another room to grab something, but once you got there had no idea what it was? Or come out of the grocery store to find you don't remember where you parked? Our memories sometimes seem to give out and we forget even the smallest things. But if you can't seem to remember those little things, it doesn't mean you're losing your mind.
If it's happened to you, the good news is you're not losing your mind. "It makes many people wonder, you know, 'there's something wrong with me,'" says BYU psychology professor and memory expert Kenneth Higbee. "They don't know that there's something wrong with everybody, and everybody has that kind of experience. We weren't paying attention at the time we parked the car, or the time we closed the door when we walked out of the house."
Higbee says it's just true-blue absent-mindedness, and suggests telling yourself what they're doing as you're doing it, and when you first meet someone, repeat their name a few times.
Higbee says people have a hard time memorizing names because they have no meaning. "Try to make the name meaningful. Like, for example, Higbee. That's not a meaningful word, but something it reminds you of, like 'Hickbee,' as in hiccups."
Also, Higbee says writing things down is almost essential in recalling information. "It helps you to see what you're trying to remember. Most people remember things they see better than things they hear."
There are also times when you've got an answer on the tip of your tongue. It's actually called the Tip-of-Your-Tongue phenomenon. But Higbee says memory all really comes to stamping the information in your mind. Think about what you're doing, and repeat the information a couple times.
